MK111 Rear Hatch Solar Panels 300W

[Cruiser 105Tvan]

Jeff, why did you put all the electrical connections at the bottom?
Or Top, if the door is open.
With the Anderson socket on the edge closest to the roof, It's a shorter run of cable to run back into the trailer.

[Phil G]

I had one of those 100W flexible panels that died up in the Kimberley after it was exposed to the hot sun every day.  I foolishly had  some thin plywood backing glued to it to stiffen it up and I'm guessing the heat couldn't get out because the panel buckled.  I hope your polycarbonate lets the heat out a bit better than my thin plywood did.

[Patrol Dude]

Jeff, why did you put all the electrical connections at the bottom?
Or Top, if the door is open.
With the Anderson socket on the edge closest to the roof, It's a shorter run of cable to run back into the trailer.

Hi mate, I placed all the wiring at the bottom for protection from low hanging branches Etc. Been on a few tracks around OZ now where pin stripping is inevitable. Just did not want the wiring head ends or loops sticking out from the panels getting caught and ripped out. I already have a anderson plug feed on the side of the Tvan that connects to the stationary solar panels at home. Hence I will make up a lead today to connect the two when in use. I,m going to double up 6mm twin sheathed cable so voltage drop over the 3M lead will be minimal.
The anderson plug on the side of the Tvan plugs into the solar feed of the Ctek D250S unit inside. It's been in place for around 4 years now and works a treat [emoji106]


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Patrol Dude
4.2TD

[Patrol Dude]

I had one of those 100W flexible panels that died up in the Kimberley after it was exposed to the hot sun every day.  I foolishly had  some thin plywood backing glued to it to stiffen it up and I'm guessing the heat couldn't get out because the panel buckled.  I hope your polycarbonate lets the heat out a bit better than my thin plywood did.

Hi Phil, your on to it. I was originally going to place them directly onto the rear hatch like some other members have, but thought better of it after some research. I have been stalking some caravan forums in regards to mounting these panels for a long while now. The likelihood of panels dying from heat if placed directly onto a solid surface is apparently very high. Many guys on the caravan forums are having excellent results from using the 8mm polycarbonate sheeting. Hence why I have chosen to go this way. If a panel does die, it's just a case of pulling the frame back off the hatch, 6 bolts and drilling out the fish plate rivets on the sides. This will then enable me to replace the faulty panel with minimal fuss. I have only used a very small amount of the Selleys 3in1 in the centre of the panels to hold them to the Polycarbonate sheets, nothing around the edges except for the channel. Hence easy to remove if required.


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Patrol Dude
4.2TD

[monktm]

Also upgraded to new gas struts with 770N


Holds it up real nice [emoji6]


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Patrol Dude
4.2TD

Where did you get the gas struts from ?

Thanks

[weonatvan]

Where did you get the gas struts from ?

Thanks

Any mob that re-gas struts can increase your existing struts to what ever pressure you desire provided your old ones are still in good nick as the gas is forced past the rod seal.

When I retro fitted bonnet struts on my tug I took them back four times to slightly increase the pressure to my desired bonnet weight. But be warned, go up in small increments as they can increase the pressure but they can't reduce/let the gas out.


"You don't know what you don't know"

Cheers dave

[weonatvan]

Hmmm......... a pity for me that you hadn't done your mod and put up info about the heat issue before the BRB. [emoji30][emoji22]

In a rush to prep my van for four days parked-up at the BRB with no charging of batteries for the freezer, I spent near a grand$ at Jaycar for 2x30w, 2x40w, 1x80w with connecting leads to put on Mr T's roof. They fitted and worked a treat with all the different angles and I was very happy with the results; until I read your post about possible heat issues.

You see, I Sikaflexed mine direct to the roof, even putting slight twist in some to follow the roof contours.



I mentioned to the store manager my intentions as he had heard of caravan users doing the same and couldn't see an issue. I was in the process of purchasing more panels for the hatch and was gunna bog them on the same way. Time to rethink. [emoji849][emoji783][emoji774][emoji776][emoji102][emoji34]

Since returning from our trip crossing the Simpson, reading your report is the second time I have read of possible heat issues. [emoji85][emoji722][emoji16]

I guess my signature comes into play here. [emoji848]


"You don't know what you don't know"

Cheers dave

[Patrol Dude]

Where did you get the gas struts from ?

Thanks

Hi mate, I actually bought new struts from Track, and had them increased. I took Boobooks lead with the amount of increased pressure. He got it spot on [emoji106]


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[monktm]

Thanks . How much please ? 

[monktm]

Any chance of the part number please ?
Might try order direct

Thanks

[weonatvan]

Oh, in my frustration of my possible stuff-up installation I forgot to congratulate you on your superb write up with detail and pics. [emoji106]

Where and how much were your solar panels?

They look like Jaycar. I bought mine locally off Jaycar as they give a 25 year  guarantee, but I certainly wouldn't hold my breath of them meeting a claim as their policy may not cover UV protection. [emoji41][emoji104]


"You don't know what you don't know"

Cheers dave

[Harry Lissimore]

Very nice Jeff.  Great work!

I've been thinking of adding semi flexible solar panels to the roof of my Topaz to compliment the 120W panel that's already there and I was wondering whether to get it professionally done either by Arrow Caravans or Springer solar or try it myself.

Where did you get the panels and how much were they?

How would I join them to the existing solar panel on the roof that just has a cable coming out from under the panel?

I was thinking of just glueing the panels to the roof with sikaflex leaving no gap between the roof and the panels.  Would that work?

Harry 

[weonatvan]

How would I join them to the existing solar panel on the roof that just has a cable coming out from under the panel?

I was thinking of just glueing the panels to the roof with sikaflex leaving no gap between the roof and the panels.  Would that work?

Harry

Joining the cables in parallel to your existing panels is the easy bit but if your using the OEM fitted regulator then it may not be of a higher enough amperage to cope with increased current.

Also, read above about potential issues affixing solar panels directly to the roof.


"You don't know what you don't know"

Cheers dave

[Patrol Dude]

Hi Harry, Dave answered your question - just connect the new solar panel positive to the positive and the negative to the negative of the existing panel. As Dave said just make sure your solar regulator has enough capacity for all the input from all your panels. Placing the Polycarbonate under the panel helps to disperse the heat from the panel which helps with its output and life span. Cheers


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Patrol Dude
4.2TD

[Patrol Dude]

Ok so panel in place and time to make the joining cable from the panels to the anderson plug input on the side of the camper. Had a roll of 6mm twin sheathed  cable so used two pieces to double up the core thickness to allow for better current throughput.

Applied heat shrink and soldered all the joints.

Put several pieces of heat shrink over the cable length to hold it together then wrapped a nylon cover over the lot.


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Patrol Dude
4.2TD